


Organic

by musicmuse0609



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Anxiety, Anxiety Attacks, Canon Compliant, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, Panic Attacks, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Prinxiety - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:34:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25135468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/musicmuse0609/pseuds/musicmuse0609
Summary: Virgil has an anxiety attack, and an unwitting hero comes to the rescue.
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders
Comments: 10
Kudos: 101





	Organic

**Author's Note:**

> This fic takes place shortly after the events of Crofters the Musical. Why? Because that's when I wrote it. Enjoy some hurt/comfort!

Virgil was laying on his bed in a fetal position, burying himself in his over-sized hoodie. One of the benefits of being able to shape his own reality was that the inside of the hoodie retained the fresh-from-the-store softness that was normally washed out or worn away. It was comforting, but not nearly enough. Virgil felt the tension in his chest deepen, and he curled tighter into himself. Thomas was on the verge of a panic attack, and Virgil felt like he would explode.

He took deep, intentional breaths, counting in - and hold - and out. He was managing to keep Thomas from a full-on spiral, but he knew it was only a matter of time before he would be consumed. Because, despite Virgil’s breathing exercise, Thomas’s anxiety continued to build.

Virgil reluctantly conceded that he wouldn’t be able to handle this one alone. He was ashamed of needing comfort, and he shook his head against the insecurity that his pleas for help would be rejected by the other sides. _I don’t want to bother any of them_ , he thought, but he fought to reminded himself how irrational that was. They had been genuinely pleased to see him pop up lately, and at the very least, Patton was always eager to lend him a hand - and a hug - when he needed one. He grimaced, but a fresh pang of Thomas’s mounting anxiety convinced him that he needed to summon Patton to his room.

He pictured Patton’s smile, imagined his laugh and remembered the way he said, “I love it!” in response to his Christmas gift. He felt the warmth of Patton’s arms around him, and he tried to pick one of Patton’s puns (which he would deny enjoying). But instead, he heard, in Roman’s voice, “It just came up organically!”

Unfortunately for Virgil, that was the moment he chose to raise his hand. He heard an indignant huff, and he realized with a groan that he had accidentally summoned the wrong side.

“What the heck, Brendan Ur-a-piece-of-work!”

Virgil didn’t uncurl to greet him, and his voice was muffled by his knees. “Not now, Roman, please?”

“I was in the middle of something!”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to summon you.” Virgil lifted his head to look at Roman, and he was almost sorry he did. “Oh no, Princey.” Roman’s face was red and splotchy, his eyes watery. Virgil shoved his face back into his knees. He couldn’t deal with this right now, but he felt like he had no choice. “Look, Thomas’s anxiety is really bad right now, and I was trying to summon Patton to help me through it. But I know you’ve been having a rough time lately, so don’t feel bad for decking out.”

Virgil didn’t hear the door open, so he assumed Roman had just sank out. He was startled when he heard Roman sniffle. Roman asked, “What does Patton usually do when you’re - like this?”

This was the last thing Virgil had expected, and he no intention of opening up to Roman like this. He didn’t want Roman to know just how soft he could be. But he felt another pang of anxiety, and he knew that if he didn’t get comfort soon, then the whole mind palace would be worse for the wear.

He felt warmth rush to his cheeks as he admitted, “Patton cuddles with me until the worst of the anxiety passes.”

Roman didn’t respond at first, and Virgil was convinced that the prince would leave. But he sniffed again, and he said, “Then move over.”

Startled, Virgil lifted his head to see that in the time that he had paused, Roman had removed his overcoat to expose the plain white tee that he wore underneath. Virgil’s first instinct was to protest. Sure, he and Roman were getting along really well lately, but friendly banter was a far cry from sharing personal space, and he wasn’t sure he would be comfortable with Princey so close. But a fresh wave of anxiety ripped its way through Virgil and he needed the pressure of another body against his _now_. And he supposed that Roman’s physique made him best suited for the job anyway. So ultimately, Virgil nodded and made room for Roman on his bed.

It was awkward. Roman clearly had no idea what to do with his arms, and he couldn’t get a good angle over Virgil’s knobby knees. Patton usually just scooped Virgil into his lap, but this didn’t occur to Princey. Virgil realized that Roman wasn’t gonna figure it out on his own, and Virgil was already too embarrassed about the whole situation to explain it to him. With great difficulty, he managed to uncurled himself to accommodate Roman’s ignorance.

Roman finally wrapped his arms around Virgil’s shoulders and back, pulled Virgil into his chest, and settled down on the bed. Virgil’s arms were curled over his chest to create a barrier between his body and Roman’s, which undercut some of the awkwardness Virgil was feeling. He focused on the pressure from Roman’s arms, which helped to take the edge off of the anxiety. But Roman was being surprisingly gentle, as if he was scared of breaking Virgil’s smaller stature. Virgil found this touching, but right now, he needed more than gentle.

“Is that the best you’ve got, Princey?”

Virgil smirked when Roman fell for his taunting and squeezed him more firmly. Despite the fact that Virgil’s chest was physically more restricted, the tension n his body eased up, and it was easier for him to breath. Virgil stuffed his face into his hands, resting his forehead against Roman’s chest.

They stayed like that for several minutes, until Roman’s body started to tense. Roman’s voice rumbled in his chest and against Virgil’s head, which he found so calming that it took him a minute to register Roman’s words. “Um, Virge, you’re room is starting to… get to me.”

When he realized what Roman was saying, he considered releasing him, but the thought sparked a fresh wave of panic. He wasn’t ready to be alone. He wriggled his arms free, and wrapped them around Roman’s waist, pressing his body flush against Roman’s for the first time.“Fine, then take me to yours.” Virgil felt himself blush again.

He braced himself to be teased, but he received no reply. Instead, Virgil felt the familiar sensation of sliding out of his surroundings. However, shooting up into Roman’s room was disorienting for Virgil, and he clung to Roman even tighter to combat the dizziness.

He felt a wave of heat beating through his jacket, and he turned his head, causing him to squint. For some reason, Roman had his bed situated right next to a window, with a sun beating directly onto them. Why did Roman need it to be so bright and hot in here? How could he think this was comfortable? Virgil shoved his head back down.

“Hey, could you maybe turn off the sun?”

“Absolutely not!” The prince exclaimed indignantly. “You’re in my space now. If you’re too hot, you’ll just have to remove the jacket.”

Was this some sort of joke? Roman didn’t actually expect Virgil to undress, and in his bed, no less? But Virgil still needed Roman’s presence. They couldn’t use his room for obvious reasons, and anywhere else in the mind palace would attract the attention of the others, which was the last thing Virgil needed. So reluctantly, Virgil shimmied out of his last layer of defense, grumbling the whole time to voice his protest.

To Virgil’s dismay, the warmth was much more pleasant with the stifling garment off. Virgil settled back into Roman’s embrace. However, with bare arms there was nothing between his skin and Roman’s.

Virgil expected to feel averse to the direct contact, but he didn’t. It was… nice. The panic in his chest eased to a dull roar, and Virgil relaxed into Roman. Roman drew his hand up and started stroking Virgil’s arm. Virgil involuntarily sighed as he let Roman break down his walls. He hated to admit it, but _this_ is what he had needed. It was much more than anything he could have gotten from Patton.

Virgil noticed that Roman’s breathing had settled into a slow, easy pace. His stroking became a caress. Virgil knew that Roman’s self-esteem issues had been worse lately, and he realized that maybe Roman needed this too. The chance to be a hero, to do something right. He whispered, “Thank you for helping me, Roman.” Roman’s breath caught, and Virgil felt the arms tighten around him.

Virgil considered teasing the prince about this later, but realized that he couldn’t. How could he mock Roman’s vulnerability in a situation where his own was just as much a factor? But more than that, he didn’t want to. He was genuinely grateful for Roman’s presence, for this tenderness that he hadn’t been privy to before. He wondered how this would affect their interactions going forward, and he felt a pang of sadness when he realized that they were both too proud to ever admit that they had shared this moment.

Perhaps this wouldn’t change a thing, but they could be there for each other in this moment. Right here, right now, this was exactly what they both needed.

**Author's Note:**

> Enjoy the fic? Leaving kudos and comments is a great way to show appreciation to your friendly neighborhood fic writer!


End file.
